MAKE is a collection of creative and intellectual works (artifacts, stories, poetry, photography, ethnodrama, and research) by a team of teachers engaged in the art of making meaning together.

We welcome you to join us in our journey: “to become a maker is to make the world for others, not only the material world but the world of ideas that rules over the material world, the dreams we dream and inhabit together” (Solnit, 2013).

Today marks 41 years since the UN began celebrating women’s achievements on March 8. Gender equity is at the heart of human rights. Excellent progress has been made, but we still have a long way to go to achieve gender parity in terms of economic opportunities, access to education and health care, and political influence/voice within households and society.

A diverse and inclusive workforce is important to drive innovation in our global community. At current rates of change, however, it will take another 118 years to close the global economic gap and attain gender justice.

I’m in Washington, DC today for ITEEA 2016. I just gave a talk on a topic that is extremely important to me: collaborating to build a diverse STEM-literate society. I argued about the need to include youth voice and choice in defining new standards for technological literacy. I brought down the house!! Literally, the lights went off and for awhile I spoke in the dark… with the serendipity of a dramatic situation to captivate the focussed attention of my audience.

Give a standing ovation to Jordan Reeves! ‪She is an inspiring 10-year old inventor who designed her own prosthetic arm that shoots glitter. She calls her prototype in-development “Project Unicorn.” I think her arm is ten times cooler than my regular arm!! Jordan participated in Superhero Cyborgs 2.0, an event where children with upper limb differences work alongside designers and engineers to “create their own superpowers” by inventing dream prosthetic devices.

Meet the lovable bot who dances, plays music, shoots lasers, and makes programming fun! Codeybot teaches computational thinking and coding through play. I just pledged 2 Codeybots (with lasers) on Kickstarter. I am excited to build, break, and combine code in new and exciting ways with my children, students, and friends. You can use your smart phone or iPad to write commands for the smart Codeybot to follow in the real world.
“Don’t just play on your phone, program it” President Obama.

Tween and teen girls are brining the world closer together with code. For example, 5 female teens made Spectrum, an app that provides a safe support system for the LGBT community. Harshita & Xyla created a wifi-enabled teddy bear that lets users send long distance hugs to their friends and loved ones. Many of the things you love are made with code. Love is using code to positively impact your community!

Here are some of the questions that we are discussing in EDCP 473. What is the role of social media in fostering youth civic engagement and digital citizenship? What are the challenges as youth develop their social relationships and identities both on and offline? How might we strengthen Canada’s laws against cyberbullying? What are the pros and cons of the WITS (Walk Away, Ignore, Talk it Out & Seek Help) program that the Canadian government is promoting?

This is a celebration of hands-on digital literacy for makers of all ages! Dig in and play with machines in our open creative space, learn about the city’s various learning pathways, and engage your brain’s experimental side. This event will be a collaborative and creativity-inspiring experience for makers of all ages who are interested in tinkering and learning new things. Everybody is welcome so bring your kids, your grandpa, and your friends to the VPL Inspiration Lab!

With Google Expeditions , teachers can take students on field trips to explore the bottom of the sea or the surface of Mars in an afternoon, visit London’s Buckingham Palace, and experience the Great Barrier Reef off of the Australian coast. Learners can take a tour of the Solar System and a VR expedition to Mars, followed by a high-speed ride on a roller coater through the jungle and an interstellar ride through a wormhole on a cosmic roller coaster!

I immediately knew that I was going to give a fantastic talk when I walked into the TELUS Spark Science Theatre… I realized that the track lighting illuminating the theatre matched perfectly with the violet LED earrings glowing in my ears! I presented artifacts and stories created by my 101 Technology Fun team, and discussed fun ways for empowering girls to build, code, hack, make, and create change.